6 Reasons to Save Your Fruits for Cleaning

Flickr photo by MalkavCitrus fruits make for yummy treats, but if you're swimming in lemons and grapefruits, it's time to put them to work in your house.

The acidic nature of these fragrant fruits has been harnessed by a host of cleaning product makers over the years -- most of them boasting a more "natural" cleaner.

But there's nothing more natural than the real thing. And they often work just as well.

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Here are a few of my favorite ways to get a citric clean -- with the added benefit of that fragrance:

1. Grapefruit and salt. Great on porcelain, this is a nice way to remove soap scum from your tub and sink without destroying the enameled surface.

2. Lemon juice. Squeeze into the laundry detergent to help make your whites whiter or use to pre-treat stains on white laundry.

3. Lemon juice and baking soda. Mixed together, this paste can be used to scrub down your sink or tub, and it does wonders on stove tops.

4. Lemon juice and water. A half and half mixture of the two works well on almost any surface, but it's especially good in the kitchen on food splatters (think inside the microwave, along the stove top).

5. Orange peels. Allowed to dry, these retain their sweet scent. Place them in a breathable bag and hang in your closets or attic to rid the place of that musty scent.

6. Lemon juice and olive oil. One part juice to two parts oil makes a light-scented furniture polish that's safe for your kids.